Tag Archives: vis

Radom is back on top in Poland

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Fabryka Broni Łucznik, Radom and the Polish Army go way back, at least as far as pistols go. Besides refurbishing captured/inherited Tsarist Russian M1895 Nagants, German P08 Lugers and various Austro-Hungarian Steyr/Frommer pistols for the force, in 1935 FB started manufacturing first Polish-closeout Nagants then the wholly-Polish Pistolet wz. 35, commonly known as the VIS after an acronym for the inventors’ last names.

Some 50,000 such guns were made for the country’s military prior to World War II — with Polish Eagle markings — and the Germans liked the single-stack 9mm so much they cranked out another 300,000 simplified guns, sans Eagles, for their own use during the war.

I saw this “sweetheart” gripped VIS at a collector show a couple years back. An occupation gun, it was captured in Western Europe by a U.S. soldier in 1944 and carried for the remainder of the war under new management.

Post-WWII, FB made the P-64s Czak and P-83 Wanad, both in 9x18mm, for the Polish Army and police forces but was edged out by the somewhat wonky WIST-94 in recent years.

Well, that has changed as FB just won a contract for 20,000 new PR-15 RAGUN pistols, which will be dubbed VIS 100s in Polish service, to both pay tribute to the old-school VIS-35 and the fact that Poland’s recent centennial celebration of achieving independence following World War I.

More in my column at Guns.com.

Also, FB just released 50 limited edition VIS Eagles, with similar honors

The gun is marked “100 LAT NIEPODLEGŁEJ” which translates roughly to “100 years of independence.” The special VIS also carries the banner of the 2 Dywizja Kawalerii (II RP), the famed Polish 2nd Cavalry Division, down the right-hand side of the slide.

Inside the Collectors’ Corner in Louisville

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With over 800 booths and vendors, the sprawling National Rifle Association Annual Meeting and Exhibits in Louisville two weeks ago had something for everyone– especially collectors.

Tucked away in the “6000s” the collector section at NRAAM took up one almost forgotten corner of the Kentucky Exposition Center but for those who were lucky enough to find it, the assemblage of collectors, auction houses and relic curators had a rare firearm exhibit open to the public rivaling anything you could see in a museum.

How about a prototype Radom VIS, serial number 108, in unfired condition. One of just 134 early guns made, there are only five left in circulation today and won the 2015 Silver Medal at the NRA’s Meeting in Nashville?

How about a prototype Radom VIS, serial number 108, in unfired condition. One of just 134 early guns made, there are only five left in circulation today and won the 2015 Silver Medal at the NRA’s Meeting in Nashville?

Or the only known low serial number Polish Army Radom Model M.31 (SN#45) in existence and a super rare Maroszek rifle Kbsp wz. 1938M (SN#1030). Speaking of NRA Silver Medals, the Maroszek picked up one of its own in 2014 in Indianapolis.

Or the only known low serial number Polish Army Radom Model M.31 (SN#45) in existence and a super rare Maroszek rifle Kbsp wz. 1938M (SN#1030). Speaking of NRA Silver Medals, the Maroszek picked up one of its own in 2014 in Indianapolis.

The Smith and Wesson Collectors Association came correct with a table of rare guns owned by former NRA directors and well-known shootists Col. Rex Applegate, Bill Jordan, and Cecil King. King’s .44 Military smoothbore, the only gun known to have been made by S&W in this configuration, has a 6.5-inch barrel with a BATFE C&R approved smoothbore barrel– the attachment on the muzzle is the choke!

The Smith and Wesson Collectors Association came correct with a table of rare guns owned by former NRA directors and well-known shootists Col. Rex Applegate, Bill Jordan, and Cecil King. King’s .44 Military smoothbore, the only gun known to have been made by S&W in this configuration, has a 6.5-inch barrel with a BATFE C&R approved smoothbore barrel– the attachment on the muzzle is the choke!

The rest in my column at Guns.com